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A bit hard to see with a still photo, but here my kids demonstrate a few signs

We started signing with my first son when he was 12 months old.  It seemed like all his little 12-month-old friends were talking and I had that whole first time Mom worry.  (Why isn't my child talking?  Which was of course absurd at 12 months)

Anyway, several of his friends also watched Signing Time and would communicate with their parents that way.  We decided to try it out and had wonderful results.  Within two weeks my son was signing all sorts of words.  Of course, by 15 months he started talking verbally, but it was only an added bonus.  We had all sorts of words to communicate with him - both verbally and through signs, and it really cut down on communication frustration to have so many options.

We used Signing Time - the regular DVDs (before they came out with Baby Signing Time) and

So we're now working with my second son - a 14-month-old toddler.  Being the second, I've been much busier and not as on the ball as I was with my first.   At 14 months, he has about 7-8 words verbally. 

We have Baby Signing Time now and we watch it on occasion but I've found the best is to sign to your toddler yourself.  I believe they pick up the signs not just from the videos but from watching Mom and Dad and the people in their lives communicate to them this way.  To date, my toddler has a few signs.  He'll let us know when he's "all done."  He'll let us know when he wants "more."  He is also more than happy to show us when he sees an "airplane" both in the air or in a toy box somewhere.  He also knows "book."  We're working on "help," "thank you," "eat," "Mommy," and "Daddy."  

There are tons of options out there now for signing with young kids.  Here's a list of a few:

Signing Time.  As I mentioned earlier, this is what we use.  I like it because all the signs are ASL (American Sign Language), and the songs are really catchy and fun for kids. 

Baby Signs.  This is an adapted program, they've taken ASL signs and made them more "baby-friendly."  They also offer classes locally so you can visit their website and see if they are offering one near you.

My First Signs.  Even Baby Einstein has jumped on board with this 45-minute DVD narrated by Marlee Matlin.

Lastly, according to the Signing Time website:

Scientific studies show that "typical" children who learn to sign:

-have higher IQ scores
-are better adjusted
-read at an earlier age